Automatic opening and closing means for overhead doors



J. N. AUTOMATIC OPENING AND CLOSING MEANS M NINCH June 17, 1958 FOR OVERHEAD DOORS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 16, 1955 James N. Ma Nina/2 INVENTOR.

BY MWIWEM J. N. M NINCH AUTOMATIC OPENING AND CLOSING MEANS FOR OVERHEAD DOORS June 17, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed may 16, 1955 James N. Mc Ninch IN VEN TOR.

9 BY and ired States art Kai AUTOMATIC OPENING AND CLOSING MEANS FOR OVERHEAD DOORS James N. McNinch, Sterling, lll.

Application May 16, 1955, Serial No. 508,423

1 Claim. (Cl. 268-59) The present invention relates to an operating apparatus for moving a member between first and second positions, and is particularly directed to a mechanism for automatically opening and closing overhead doors, such as those commonly found in garages, warehouses and the like.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide an operating mechanism in conjunction with a carriage and a guide track upon which the carriage moves, which operating mechanism includes means of a simple and convenient nature for stopping the automatic opening or closing movement of the door in response to the position of the carriage plate to which the door is attached for its opening and closing movement.

Essentially, the invention is drawn to an operating mechanism in combination with a carriage reciprocably movable along a guide track which operating mechanism includes driven means attached to the carriagefor moving the same along the guide track along with electrically operated or controlled driving means operably connected to the driven means for reciprocably moving the same with control actuating means carried by the carriage and the driven means operating the control means to stop the driving means when the carriage reaches either limit of its reciprocal movement along the track.

A further object of the invention is in the provision of an automatic operating apparatus or system for overhead doors which may be easily attached and dismounted.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a side elevational View of the operating mechanism constituting the invention set up for operation in an overhead door construction with the door being shown in cross-section and in closed position;

Figure 2 is a top view of the operating mechanism;

Figure 3 is a side elevational view of the mechanism with the door being shown in its open position;

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view through the cable winding drum constituting a portion of the driven means of the apparatus; and

Figure 5 is an enlarged perspective view with certain parts in cross-section of the carriage plate and its rolling mounting in the guide track therefor.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, there is shown in Figure l the operating mechanism, apparatus or system constituting the present invention and designated in its entirety by the numeral 19. The mechanism consists essentially of a guide track 12 which guidingly reciprocably carries the carriage plate 14 for movement therealong. Driven means or carriage moving means 16 is driven by the driving means 18 to move the carriage 14 along the track 12. Electrical control means 20 disposed at one end of the track include a pair of switches 22 and 24, disposed respectively in the path of movement of the carriage plate 14 and a portion of the driven means 16, these switches stopping the operation of the driving means 18 in response to the movement of the carriage plate 14 to either of its reciprocable limits on the guide track 12.

To its forward, or header, end, the track 12 has attached thereto a sheave mounting bracket 23 to the free end of which is attached one plate 26 of a hinge. The second plate of the hinge, designated by the numeral 28, is attached to the header 3i) over a garage door opening or the like 32. Hinge pin 33 connects the hinge plates 26 and 23 and serves as a convenient manner of attaching the header end of the guide track 12.

With this arrangement of the bracket 23, the hinge plate 28 may be first fastened to the header 30 of the door and the header end of the track 12 lifted upwardly until the eyelets of the hinge plate 26 are in alignment with the eyelets of the hinge plate 28, and then, the hinge pin 33 shoved into place. Then, the rearward end portion of the guide track 12 may be lifted up on a ladder or the like into position and suspended from suitable straps 34 from the rafters or the like of a building. Normally closing the garage door opening or entrance 32 is an overhead door 36 of the pivoted section type wherein the pivoted sections of the door ride upwardly then rearwardly along side guide rails 38.

in accordance with the present invention, to automatically perform this operation, the carriage plate 14 has attached pivotally thereto one end of a door attaching arm 4% Angle plate or other means 42 is provided at the free end of the arm 41) for attachment to the door 36 whereby the door will be raised and lowered in response to movement of the carriage plate.

The carriage plate 14, as will be noted particularly from Figure 5, consists simply of a fiat plate having guide wheels or rollers 44 journaled on opposite sides thereof. The guide track 12 comprises a pair of spaced, parallel facing channel elements'46 between which the carriage plate 14 is received, with the pair of rollers 44 on each side of the carirage plate 14 being received in an associated channel 46. i

The driven means 16 for the carriage plate consists essentially of an elongated flexible element or cable 56, the opposite ends of which are attached to the opposite ends of the carriage plate 14, one of these ends being provided with an adjustable turn-buckle 52 whereby the tension on the cable may be initially adjusted as desired.

The intermediate portions of the cable or flexible element 50 are journaled over roller elements at opposite ends of the track, one of the roller elements being the sheave 54 journaled on the mounting bracket 23 at the header end of the track and the other roller element constituting the winding drum 56 disposed at the other end of the track.

The Winding drum 56 may be most clearly observed in Figure 4, and it will be noted that the surface of this drum is provided with winding grooves 58. The intermediate portion of the cable 50 is looped around the surface of the drum a plurality of times with the diameter of the cable being slightly greater than the diameter of the grooves 58, whereby as the cable is tensioned, it will tightly frictionally seat in these grooves. The importance of this feature will become apparent immediately.

The drum 56 is rotatably journaled on a drive shaft 69. The drive shaft 60 rigidly carries a clutch or friction plate 62 for rotation therewith above the drum and adjustably carries a bearing member or plate 64 below the drum. The bearing member 64 is carried adjustably by means of the lock nuts 66 threaded onto the lower end of the drive shaft 69. The drum 56' is provided with a bore 68 opening into the lower end 70 thereof, and resilient means in the form of coil spring 72 surrounding the drive shaft 60 normally reacts at its ends on the hearing plate 64 and the drum 56 so that the upper end 74 of the drum is moved into frictional "engagement with'the clutch lining 63 on clutch 62 whereby the drum 56 will rotate inresponse to rotation ofthe driveshaft 60.

By looping the cable 50 severaltimes around the drum 56 so that the cable tightly frictionally seats in the winding grooves 58, the drum may also servelthe function of 'a clutch in that when anoverload due to the door striking an obstruction or other cause 'is placed on the drive shaft 60, as determined by the tension or compression applied to the spring 72,' the drum will stop and slip against clutch lplate lining 63 and no longer rotate in response to the rotation of the drive shaft 60. The drive shaft 60 extends from a suitable speed reducer 76 operatively connected to or forming a part of the drive motor 78, these two elements means for the mechanism.v v

The motor is electrically controlled through the control box 80 housing the necessary relay and wiring needed for the operation of the device. In electrical connection with the control box 80 through the conductor cable 82 is the control means 20 previously noted. Extend ing from the control box 20 is a shaft 84' which overlies the track 12 adjacent the rearward end of the track.

Through the oscillation of this shaft, in response to move ment of the switches 22 and 24, the motor 78 is stopped. To stop the motor 78 "when the door 36 is in its closed position, the carriage plate 14 therebybeing in its foremost position along the track 12, the outer flight 86 of the cable 50 is provided with a cam member 88 whichengages the switch 24. Obviously, the member 88 may be provided with a setscrew or the like to fixedly attach the same to the cable whereby the same may be,

adjusted along the cable to control the forward moveconstituting the driving.

riage where desired in accordance with the size of the door being opened and the length of travel necessary to open the same.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of thev principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and, changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described and claimed, and accordingly, all suitable modi-' fications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

In combination with a carriage reciprocably movable along a drive track, an operating mechanism including driven means attached to saidcarriage for reciprocating the same along said guide track, driving means operably connected to said driven means for reciprocating the same to reciprocate the carriage, electrical control means stopping said drive means, control actuating means carried by the carriage and said driven means operating said control means to stop saiddriving means when the carriage reaches either limit of its reciprocal movement, said driven means comprising an elongated flexible cable hav ing its ends attached to opposite ends of said carriage and its intermediate portion entrained aronnd'rotatable roller 1 elements at points beyond the limits of reciprocal movement of said carriage, said control means comprising a ment of the carriage plate 14 in response -to the size of the door opening. 1 a

To actuate the switch 22 when the door has moved to its open position asshown in Figure 3, the carriage plate is provided with an elongatedcamming plate or arm 90 which is disposed in parallel relation thereto with a a wedge-shaped rearward end 92 which engages the switch 22 and earns the same upward to stop the motor 78 when the door is in its completely open position, as shown in Figure 3. This, of course,' signifies the limit of rearward movement of the carriage plate 14 along the track 12.

The arm 90 is provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced apertures 94 therein, selected apertures of which 7 align with corresponding apertures in the carriage plate 14 receiving fasteners 96 to'secure the actuating arm 90 in place. With'this arrangement, the arm may be extended rearwar'dly beyond the carriage plate to any predetermined extent to stop the rearward movement of the carpair 'of switch levers for stopping said driving means to establish the limits of reciprocal movement of the carriage and disposed at one end of the guide track, one in the path of movement of the carriageand the other overlying a run of said cable, a cam member on said one run for operatively engaging one of the switch levers, and a cam plate on the carriage for operatively engaging the other'of said switch levers, and means adjustably mounting said cam plate on said carriage for extension outwardly of the carriage difierentdistances for variably engaging said other switch lever in diflferent positions of the carriage to vary the limits of reciprocal movement of the carriage. 7

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATEN'IS,

Andrews Aug. 16, 1955 

